Carrie Prejean Is Not in the Running for This American Indian Transgender Pageant

On Sunday, the two-year reign of Ricki Quintero — the sitting Miss Indian Transgender Arizona — will come to an end, as she presides over the biannual competition to name her successor. (We won’t pretend to be experts on Native American culture, but perhaps that’s why we’re so fascinated by traditional beliefs and the “two-spirit” philosophy.) It’s believed to be the only pageant in the region that specifically highlights transgender Native Americans who, unlike their Miss America counterparts, can get away with fashioning some fierce deerskin numbers.